Tesco stop selling baby sleep aids linked to 12 deaths

Diane King

Sleep aids linked to the deaths of 12 babies have been pulled from Tesco shelves.

eBay has also withdrawn the items from sale, but other British supermarkets and high street retailers as well online firms are still selling the baby sleep positioners.

Tesco and eBay say they have stopped selling the baby sleep positioners, which have been linked to 12 deaths in the US, with Mothercare reportedly following suit.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had previously advised parents not to use the products, and renewed its advice this week, re-emphasising its warning that the pillows can cause newborns to suffocate.

The sleep positioners, also called "nests" or "anti-roll" cushions, are supposed to help babies to get to sleep, but instead there are fears that they could cut off a baby's oxygen.

According to the FDA, the deaths occurred when babies rolled from their sides onto their fronts before they stopped breathing.

The Lullaby Trust (www.lullabytrust.org.uk), a cot death charity which advises the NHS, offers an advice sheet which states: "There is no need to use any type of equipment or rolled up blankets to keep your baby in one position unless you have been advised by a health professional for a specific medical condition.

"It is much safer for your baby to be in their cot with just the sheets or blankets, and no extras which could be pulled over their face or cause an accident.”